Building Confidence and Leadership: Mitsni Uswatun Hasanah’s Experience in Moderating the Academic Writing and Reading Workshop for International Students during the SN-GES 2025 Orientation Program
Cirebon, September, 12th 2025 — On the morning of 12 September 2025, the fifth-floor conference room of the Cyber Building at UIN Siber Syekh Nurjati Cirebon was alive with anticipation. Under the direction of Lala Bumela, Director of the International Office and architect of the Syekh Nurjati Global Excellent Scholarship (SN-GES) 2025 orientation program, an Academic Writing and Reading Workshop was convened as part of the ongoing effort to equip new international students with academic skills and intercultural awareness. The workshop, facilitated by Sirniawati, S.Pd.I., from Universitas Kuningan, brought together scholars from the Philippines, Thailand, Senegal, and Yemen—four countries now represented on the UIN SSC campus—while several Nigerian awardees were still in transit because of immigration issues linked to unrest at home. Lala Bumela opened the session with a direct and heartfelt address to the participants and the interns of the Global Engagement Team (GET): “This workshop is more than a class on writing and reading,” he said, looking around at the diverse group. “It is a living exercise in cross-cultural collaboration. Our SN-GES scholars are bringing the world to Cirebon, and our interns—students from the Philippines, Thailand, Senegal, and Yemen themselves—are learning to lead. Together you are creating the spirit of a truly global university.”
Among those interns was Mitsni Uswatun Hasanah, a member of the Global Engagement Team, the International Office’s core unit that combines staff and student interns to deliver high-impact programs. Mitsni’s assignment for the day was not just to hold a microphone but to orchestrate the entire flow of the session: opening the workshop with a warm welcome, introducing the facilitator, managing the transition between presentations and group discussions, keeping time, and guiding the question-and-answer segment. For Mitsni, who had previously only assisted with logistical tasks, this was a leap into visible leadership. As she later reflected, “Standing in front of scholars from the Philippines, Thailand, Senegal, and Yemen challenged me to move beyond my comfort zone,” Mitsni said. “Moderating this workshop taught me how to listen deeply, keep a room focused, and encourage people from different backgrounds to share their voices. It was leadership training in real time.”
Lala Bumela, who intentionally places interns into such roles to accelerate their growth, underscored the significance of Mitsni’s performance: “We don’t just want our interns to watch,” he explained during a mid-session check-in. “We want them to experience the pressure and responsibility of facilitating an international program. When Mitsni moderates, she isn’t just helping the speaker—she is learning to be a bridge across cultures and to represent UIN SSC with professionalism.”
Behind Mitsni stood the rest of the Global Engagement Team—the local student interns of UIN SSC’s International Office—who worked in close coordination with the permanent staff to ensure that every aspect of the workshop ran smoothly. While Mitsni guided the flow onstage, her fellow interns handled microphones, managed presentation slides, prepared attendance sheets, and welcomed late arrivals. Interpreters from the team also assisted scholars from the Philippines, Thailand, Senegal, and Yemen who were less confident in English, ensuring that every participant could follow the content. This coordinated structure transformed the Academic Writing and Reading Workshop into a seamless experience for the SN-GES 2025 international scholars, who could concentrate on learning rather than logistics.
This collaborative model not only benefited the SN-GES 2025 international students but also acted as a structured training ground for the Global Engagement Team—the local student interns of UIN SSC’s International Office. By rotating through essential tasks such as registration, documentation, interpretation, moderation, and technical support, these interns were able to build real-world competencies in event planning, cross-cultural facilitation, and real-time problem-solving. Under this system, the scholars from the Philippines, Thailand, Senegal, and Yemen could focus on learning and networking, while the interns gained a living laboratory of international program management. Mitsni’s move from behind-the-scenes duties to moderating a high-stakes workshop exemplified the deliberate opportunities the International Office creates for its Global Engagement Team members—turning ordinary internship assignments into leadership training and confidence-building experiences that mirror the very intercultural skills the university seeks to cultivate.
At the close of the workshop, Lala Bumela returned to the front of the room to offer a personal message of appreciation that went beyond routine thanks. “What you achieved here today is extraordinary,” he told Mitsni and her fellow interns. “Your professionalism, empathy, and quick thinking are not only sustaining the success of these programs but also shaping UIN SSC’s reputation as a truly welcoming, globally minded cyber university. Keep this spirit alive—you are the architects of our success.” His words left a visible impact on the interns, reinforcing that the success of the SN-GES 2025 orientation so far was directly tied to the dedication and leadership of the Global Engagement Team. For Mitsni, it marked not just a milestone in her internship but a formative step toward becoming a confident leader in international program management.
Author: Muhammad Azkiya Bahtsulkhoir